Stones Can Talk- Part II

My camera gets balky in low light, so some of the inscriptions turned out to be less than legible. Here are a few that turned out to be decent enough to share:

Near this spot lie the Remains of

FRANCIS EDMONSTONE the first born Son

of the   REV^d CHARLES BARDIN A.M.

Curate of S^t MARYS PARISH.

He died on the 7^th of April 1823

An Infant –

yet inexpressibly dear

to his Parents.

of Such is the ------ KINGDOM of GOD

SACRED TO THE MEMORY

OF ISABELLA HOWARD otherwife Parry

Wife of GORGES EDMOND HOWARD Efqs.

Who living was an example

Of every Social Virtue;

And dying of the placid refignation

Of a truly pios well fpent life

She departed on the 8^th day of April 1780

In the 60^th Year of her age.

NOTE: The grandparents of Gorges Edmund HOWARD (1715-1785) were Capt. William JACKSON (abt 1665-1712) of Coleraine & Elizabeth GORGES (d. 1747). They are included in my Rootsweb tree. Isabella HOWARD (1720-1780) was a daughter of Captain Philip PARRY of Dublin, merchant.

Sacred

TO THE MEMORY OF

JOSEPH WRIGHT

OF DUNCAIRN IN THE COUNTY OF ANTRIM

AND RUTLAND SQUARE WEST DUBLIN SOLICITOR

WHO DIED 1^ST JUNE 1825 AGED 57 YEARS,

AND OF MARY HIS WIFE

WHO DIED 19^TH MARCH AGED 59 YEARS.

“Lord thou wilt ordain peace for us for thou also

Has wrought all our works in us.  ISAIAH XXVI CHAP 12 ven

NOTE: The family crest in this photo has three unicorn heads, and the motto: Honor Virtutis Prǣmium. The General Armory says this was conferred on Thomas Charles WRIGHT of South America, 2^nd son of Joseph WRIGHT Esq. of Queensborough, Drogheda.

Near this place lie the remains of

Sufanna Newcome

Of the ancient family of the D’Oylys

Baronets in Oxfordshire

She married William Lord Bishop of Dromore

And after the fharpest of pains in childbirth

Patiently breathed out her pure and pious soul to God

Dec XXX MDCCLXIX in the XXX year of her age.

NOTE: According to Wikipedia: William Newcome died at his residence, St. Stephen's Green, Dublin, on 11 January 1800, and was buried in the chapel of Trinity College, Dublin. He was twice married, and had by his first wife one daughter, by his second wife a numerous family.

Apologies - I didn’t capture the top of the inscription.

Lord Bishop of WATERFORD

A lady formed by Divine providence

For the Residence of all Christian Virue

And every amiable Quality

To her Superior Understanding

Improved by a generous Education and much R[?]dling

Were joined a benevolent & Obliging Disposition

And an affable and courteous Deportment

Which with a peculiar livelinefs of Spirit & wit

Rendered her Conversation Entertaining & instructive

And qualified her to Sustain the Different Station of Life

To which She appeared, with high Reputation.

She abounded with the Truest signs of a most affectionate

Tenderness towards her Husband and Children;

Of Kindness to her Relations; of Charity to the poor

And faithfulness to her Friends.

In Return for these Excellencies,

She was loved and esteemed by all that Knew her

Particularly by her Royal Mistress the Princess of

ORANGE & her Friend the Countess of CHESTERFIELD.

Her last Sicknefs,

Which was long and Severe,

She bore with all patience and Fortitude,

Which Reason and religion could give,

And continued intent on her Devotions

Till with her last Breath, on the 30^th day of June 1752

She recommended her Soul into the hands of her Almighty Creator and most mercifull Redeemer,

To her memory, which will ever be honoured by & dear to him,

This Monument was erected by her most affectionate

Husband.

NOTE: The dates are right for him to be Richard Chenevix (1698 – 11 September 1779), a descendent of Huguenot immigrants. Source: Wikipedia. I believe that his wife was Dorothea DIVES, sister to Admiral DIVES. Other readers may be able to add more.

SEE ALSO: Parish records of st. Mary's that mention JACKSONs.

Stones can talk - Part I

On June 13^th, 1886, the entire city of Vancouver, BC went up in flames. All that remained was the Hastings Mill Store, which was built out of stone, and a few remaining buildings along False Creek. As a long-time Vancouverite, this is part of why I still can’t stop gawking when I walk around downtown Dublin. Many of the old buildings, ones that I have read about in centuries old deeds, are still standing. Amazing.

It doesn’t mean that they necessarily serve the same function that they did centuries ago. How could they? It took me a few visits before I realized that St. Mary’s Church of Ireland, the parish church of lots of Jacksons from the mid-1700s, had morphed into the Church Bar & Restaurant. I recently mentioned it in a post where I also included a picture of Nick Reddan and myself, along with a plate of decidedly decent fish and chips.

Later, as I walked around inside, I thought about those ancestors who have held on to so many deeds, letters and photos. Without such collectors, both amateur and professional, we would have no historical memory. At the same time, there are those other family members who have tossed bushels of family history into the bin or the flames. Ironically, we need these people too. Without them, we would be up past our eyeballs in dead people’s stuff. Dublin wrestles with such compromises on a continual basis. There is a difference between history and baggage, and yet both of them shape what stays and what goes. The end result is often telling.

Inside the Church Bar & Restaurant are dozens of memorials mounted on the walls, a reminder of those long gone souls who were once part of its life in its previous incarnation as a Church. As it is, these plaques are probably seen, appreciated, and pondered over more than they would have been had the building remained as a Church, especially one that lacked a viable congregation. As I walked around, I played snatches of Handel’s Messiah in my head. It was first publicly performed in Dublin in April 1742. Although it was performed on Fishamble Street, the organ that Handel used for practice was here in this church.

In sussing out the theological tilt of this church in the mid 1700s, it is probably worth noting that John Wesley, the founder of the Methodist Church, delivered his first Irish sermon here in 1747. In terms of political heritage, the founder of the United Irishmen, Theobald Wolfe Tone was born here, and just so we don’t get too pious, Arthur Guinness, founder of the Guinness Brewery, was married here two years before baby Theobald was baptised.

Although St. Michan’s seems to be the church that was more connected to some of the Jacksons involved in the 1798 Rebellion, Pill Lane, where the rebel Henry Jackson (1750-1817) lived and conducted his iron forging business, was just as close to St. Mary’s as it was to St. Michin’s. The neighbourhood was also about a ten minute walk from the Linen Hall on the corner of Coleraine and Lisburn St. This would mean that the church likely had connections to those families of Jacksons who leased lands in Londonderry from the Mercers and Clothmakers Companies of Coleraine. Elizabeth Ball, daughter of Dorothy Jackson (1696-1760) and John Ball (1702-1764) was baptised at St. Mary’s in 1724. It is likely that several of the other Jacksons in the St. Mary’s Parish Registers in this time frame were also her near relations.

The old graveyard is now a paved, open space frequented mostly by pigeons. Missing are any of the memorials of those whose burials I have records of: William Jackson,1718; Elizabeth Jackson, 1722; Thomas Jackson, 1724; two John Jacksons,1729 & 1736; Solloman Jackson, 1735; Margaret Jackson, 1739, and three Mary Jacksons in1729, 1734, and 1738.

Behind the church, old grave marker slates are stacked against a wall, but from what I could see their inscriptions are no longer legible. Other stones are laid like flagstones in the graveled courtyard, and some of those are still legible. Had I ever thought that I might write about them, I would have taken more pictures. Then again, there can always be a future post.

WHITESTONE

.... at his ...

Who died on the 8^th May

Aged 68 Years

Also of SUSANNA his wife

Who died Nov 21^st 1835

Aged 76 Years

And

In the same grave was laid the remains of

Michael Henry WHITESTONE Esq.

Late of Hardwide St

Who departed this life on the

16^th of Sept 1845

Aged 57 years

He was a kind and affectionate Husband

And a sincere friend

His bereaved Widow

Catherine Maria WHITESTONE

Inscribes this to his memory

Also the Rev JOHN THOMAS WHITESTONE

Rector of

The Parish of Killeevan Co. Monaghan

Diocese of Clogher

Died April 8^th 1858 Aged 52 Years

Also Mrs SUSAN WARRTY [?]

Late of G^t Charles S^t who departed this life

9^th November 1858 Aged 66 Years

The words carved on such stones are merely a starting point. An obit for the Rev. John Thomas Whitestone adds to his story:

April 8^th. At Dublin (where he suddenly dropped down dead whilst attending the meeting of the Protestant Alliance) aged 52, the Rev. John Thomas Whitestone, B.A. Rector of Killeven.

Dropped down dead. Ah, yes. Much more evocative than the inscription. Even so, discoveries such as this are why it makes sense to visit Ireland in person. Sure, you can find the on-line internet records for St. Mary’s Parish and they do include the burial records for both John Whitestone, and Michael Henry Whitestone, but for whatever reason Susanna Whitestone was missed. Why? I don’t know. If I hadn't seen the stone, I would never have known about her. There is one more reason for traipsing about in person. How likely is it that would I ever have found a gravestone for a Co. Monaghan clergyman who just happened to drop down dead in Dublin? Not likely at all.

My next post will include a handful of memorials mounted inside the restaurant, ones that caught my fancy for one reason or another. Nothing logical. I am rarely that. Until then, I will give the pigeons the last word. They seem to enjoy the space.

The flagstones in the foreground are actually old grave markers.

SEE ALSO: Parish records of st. Mary's that mention JACKSONs.